Nope, not St Peter's in Rome but the Papal Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, just down the road. It is in fact the mother church for Catholics. I'll start you with the exterior (now the scene of much trading which is something of an inappropriate distraction). 1: As we head inside, you'll appreciate the challenges of darkness, no tripods and no flash. I really enjoyed the various ways to overcome this without always resorting to too much ISO. Even managed a bit of sneaky tonemapping on some too. 2 Interior: 3 The Nave. Not looking bad after nearly two millennia of use, plus earthquakes, fires and visits from the Vandals, Visigoths and more: 4 I had to lift the camera above my head to get the flame in to complete this shot: 5 The Papal Cathedra (ie, his big chair): 6 Straight shot in the apse: 7 Steps of money. My daughter busied herself taking closeups of various notes and monies left as donations. Moldovan cash proved a frequent spot: 8 Cardinal Pietro Gasparri, a major Vatican diplomat of the early 20th Century: 9 Chapel: 10 Rosary Beads. I have this as a 'straight shot' but loved how the beads appeared to glow at the angle where I'd found something to rest my camera on: 11 At Prayer. Here, the floor tile effect fascinated me, like an Escher work: Thanks.
Wow! Superb architecture! Can't pic a fave - superb set! I bet yon mon will be spinning in his tomb at what that lot is worth!
Cracking set...for some reason I was expecting a Dave Allen type pic of the pope being run around in some kind of sedan chair
Thanks all. Glad the rosary beads shot works: I started out with a very long exposure to get it all bright and clear but this version really creates the mood for me.
Superb set,nos 3 and 10 are favorite's for me closely followed by no 11 ,like you that floor fascinates me!
If that rosary bead shot wasn't intended then it should have been. Like the whole set and I shall forego any criticism about how much money the church has spent on decoration.....
Well, I had several goes at it to see what worked best and got approval from my live-in Catholic as to what was the most atmospheric. The whole point of my togging was to try to get something different from the million other shots taken of the place that day by others...and using natural tripods to get the best low ISO exposures. Well, they have worked on it for two millennia and most the work to build it and repair it after the Vandals did their stuff was funded by donations, but we'll not go there. I'm here for the photos, cheers!
Wow, impressive shots of an impressive building. You achieved your goal with shot number 10, it is excellent.
Thanks for this - I enjoyed seeing it through your eyes - and what a feast! There is so much to see and enjoy, especially of the altar in number 3 - with that curious structure overhead. The converging verticals seem to emphasize the vastness of the space and architecture. Just make sure that bloke who runs the horizon police doesn't see it - he'd have a field day. I think it works a treat. I also enjoyed how the front door exterior just doesn't prepare you for the vastness when you go in! Very enjoyable. Palestrina succeed Lassus here so was a bit of my musical pilgrimage when I visited. Did you tog Santa Maria Maggiore?
